[untitled] The Journal of English and Germanic Philology, (1917-01-01), pages 147-149

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Reviews and Notes 147

zergliedert. Ihm stellen No. 1 und 5 die Rippen des Gebaudes
dar; No. 2, 3, 4 sind nur lose verbunden mit No. 1, wahrend No. 6
und 7 wieder fur sich stehen. Das ergibt folgendes verwickeltes

2 3 4
Schema: 1 5. Und das alles mit sogenannter hochster

6 7
ktinstlerischer Absicht des Dichters! Ja, sogar die Zeilen der
verschiedenen Legenden hat der Dichter symmetrisch abgezahlt!
Eugenia und Vitalis enthalten respektive 530 und 720, dagegen
No. 2, 3, 4, 6, 7 haben respektive 250, 380, 250, 270 und 200
Zeilen. Das wachst einem zum Hals heraus, wiirde man im
gewohnlichen Umgang sagen, und dabei an manches Wort
Goethes denken, wenn er nach tiefen Intentionen seiner Werke
befragt wurde! "Legt ihr's nicht aus, so legt was unter!" mochte
man auch hier ausrufen!

Zudem haben wir hier ein brillantes Beispiel, an dem man so
recht abnehmen kann, wie " wissenschaf tlich " solche Auslegung
oft werden kann. Ermatinger behandelt dies selbe Problem
(s. besonders S. 480 f.) der Architektonik der Sieben Legenden,
kommt aber zu ganz anderem — nebenbei viel befriedigerendem —
Ergebnis. Nach Ermatinger ergibt sich folgendes Schema: 1-2-
3-4-5-6:7; also Verschleifung jeder Legende mit der folgenden,
die letzte ausgenommen, welche fur sich steht, gewissermaszen
unabhangig, und doch den Sinn der ganzen Reihe zusammen-
fassend.

Als Fiihrer auf dem Gebiete der Kellerforschung ist Ermatingers
Buch nicht nur durchaus zuverlassig, es ist maszgebend. Litera-
turangaben sind dem 1. Band nicht beigegeben. Man kann
aber versichert sein, dasz seine Angaben auf guten Belegen ruhen
und dasz die gesamte Keller-Literatur benutzt worden ist. Die
Ubersetzungsliteratur ist allerdings etwas zu kurz gekommen.
Ausstattung und Buchschmuck sind angemessen und in jeder
Hinsicht vorziiglich, nur das Titelbild enttauscht. Dem Verlan-
gen, ein nicht bekanntes Bild zu bringen, haben wir dieses ge-
schmacklose Konterfei zu verdanken, was mir als Kellervereh-
rer, der den Meister immer im besten Lichte vorfuhren mochte,
sehr leid tut.

Miami University, Juni 1916. C. H. Handschin.

OSCAR LUDVIG OLSON: THE RELATION OF THE H ROLFS
SAGA KRAKA AND THE BJARKARIMUR TO BEO-
WULF. A Contribution to the History of Saga Development
in England and the Scandinavian Countries. (Chicago
dissertation, 1916)

This investigation appears as no. 1 of the third volume of the

Publications of the Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian

148 Hollander

Study. 1 It is a decidedly talented performance. Its chief interest,
to the present writer, lies in a further successful corroboration of
Axel Olrik's thesis that Northern England, as the meeting ground
of Celtic and Scandinavian culture, gave the Icelandic saga,
especially of course, the Fornaldarsogur, a not inconsiderable
number of new motifs and impulses. The general case seems to
be that Scandinavian activity furnishes the realism of a story,
its backbone of facts, and Celtic lore the subsidiary motifs and
embellishments. In the Helgi story, to cite only one example,
the figure of the treacherous Sculd, Hrolf's half-sister in the oldest
sources even, is given fuller life in the Hrolfssaga by the incorpo-
ration of the Celtic motif of the Loathy Lady; 2 and in the FrocSa
battr of the same saga (treating of the "exile-return" story of the
brothers Hroarr and Helgi) Olson prettily shows that the main
lines of the action are found already in early Scandinavian Heroic
poetry, whereas the details of the brothers' flight, their concealment,
rescue, and revenge resulted from contact with Celtic material
in the Meriadoc and Macbeth stories, of which there are clear
traces especially in Saxo's version.

The title of this study is a misnomer, not being sufficiently
inclusive. It covers well the first section which treats of the
origin of the Bjarki-Hjalti story and the relative age of the Bjar-
karimur. Footing on the results of Olrik, laid down chiefly in
his volumes of Dansk Heltedigtning, Olson is able to show the
origin of the dragon which is slain by Bjarki outside the king's
hall as being, in the last instance, due to a substitution for the
bear (of Saxo's version) on account of the hero's own bear nature
— a trace of totemism, by the way. It is not in the least related
to the dragon in Beowulf.

Here a little too much stress is, in the writer's opinion, laid on
this dragon being called (N. B. by the coward Hjalti) hitt mesta
troll. The term troll is applied to animals and men of unusual
strength, ferocity, or ugliness, but does not necessarily imply any
supernatural qualities. 3 Hence it is of little practical use to devote
a number of pages to explain why the drinking of the animal's
blood does not give Hjalti any troll-like qualities. No, the animal
is just an honest dragon and no troll, and the drinking of its blood
harms Hjalti no more than the eating of Fafnis heart Sigurd.
On the other hand I cannot see the least connection between this
story and the legend quoted from Arnason. — By the way, one
ought to think that to give up almost a whole page of fine print
to describing the general nature of trolls would have been unneces-
sary in a learned monograph on Scandinavian folklore!

"Urbana, 111., 1911 fi.

2 See Dansk Heltedigtning I, p. 15^.

3 Cf. such expressions as hann var hitt mesta trollmcnni fyrir sakir afls ok
vaxtar, Fid. Ill, 285; the Bjarkarfmur on the same occurrence has it that Hjalti
became ramr sent troll. Cf. also our own X-genetive "he is the devil of a
fellow" etc.

Reviews and Notes 149

In connection with the motif of propping up the dead monster,
it would have been helpful to compare other examples such as
the ones in the Finnbogasaga, the Faeringasaga, the ThiSrekssaga,
and the Qrvar Oddssaga, especially as the reason for Bjarki's
action is discussed in detail. To be sure, I am not convinced by
the author's vindication of the Hrolfssaga in this point. It is a
somewhat lame proof of Hjalti's newly acquired heroic strength
to knock over a stuffed animal!

In agreement with F. Jonsson, and against Olrik, Panzer, Law-
rence, and other scholars it is demonstrated conclusively that
with respect to the nature of the monster the Bjarkarimur are
of later composition than the Hrolfssaga. Finally, a good deal
of learned trifling is disposed of once for all in showing that the
sword-name Gullinhjalti in the saga — whence Hjalti's name — is
not connected with the words gylden hilt in Beowulf which actually
refer only to the handle of a sword; as indeed the often asserted
connection between Beowulf and the Hrolfssaga is not demonstra-
ble.

Least successful, technically, is the third part of the study which
deals with the various versions of the Hroar-Helgi episode in
Saxo, the SkJQldungasaga, etc. I fear that it is a case of easy
writing which makes hard reading, especially in matters of com-
plicated genealogies such as the Scylding line!

Fault might also be found with the too lengthy quotations of
authorities and that sufficient distinction is not made, by typo-
graphical devices, between what is quoted and what is the author's
own. Some details: I cannot agree with the author's contention
that Bjarki's renouncing his kingdom in Norway, in order finally
to become Hrolf's man, is unmotivated as being against human
nature and shows servile imitation of earl Siward's life history.
Rather, it shows a joint between the fairy-tale like story of Bjarki's
origin and his later deeds under the great king. And, for that
matter, is it so unusual for a hero to leave his " ness-kingdom " and
to go on adventures and carve out a realm with his own good
sword? — The boys Hrani and Hamur do not wear masks at Sa^vil's
court, in order to disguise themselves, which would certainly
have led to detection; but fieir vo'ru jafnan t kuflum (cowls) ok
tokn aldri of an kuflhqttuna. — Why does Olson say that in Saxo's
version "Halfdan's name has become Harald, " seeing that Saxo's
account certainly is the older.

All of these minor criticisms are not meant in any way to detract
from the writer's high opinion of this essay in a difficult and
extensive field.

L. M. Hollander.
University of Wisconsin.